


No Reason To Go

by Pokegeek151



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: (Flash makes a fat shaming comment but it's not the point of the piece), (Flash makes a transphobic comment but it's not the point of the piece), Autistic Peter Parker, Bisexual Peter Parker, Bullying, Fat Shaming, Field Trip, Flash is a douche waffle, Flash makes a comment implying Peter used sexual favors to gain clearance, Gen, I'm not sure if I need to tag the rude comments he makes, Irondad, Peter Parker's Field Trip to Stark Industries, Peter doesn't go on the field trip, Spiderson and Irondad, Stimming, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony does not like Flash, Trans Peter Parker, Transphobia, Understandably, but better safe than sorry, each of those things is a single sentence, he is very wrong, mixing up that formula, seriously though, spiderson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-25
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-08-29 10:38:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16742431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pokegeek151/pseuds/Pokegeek151
Summary: When the location of the chemistry field trip is revealed to be none other than Peter's home of Stark Tower, Peter decides to skip the awkwardness and spend the time working on his own projects.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I would have uploaded this as a one-shot but there's a POV shift in the middle, and I didn't want it to be confusing.

The whole school was abuzz the week after Mr. Cobbwell announced this year’s chemistry field trip. As far as the students were concerned, this was going to be one of the most important events of their school careers. Every chemistry student (which, seeing as they attended a STEM school, meant almost every Junior) was invited, and the rumor mill was hard at work trying to guess where they were going. The Friday before the trip, pink permission slips were handed out, and the student body was ready to burst at the reveal of the location--Stark Tower, current headquarters of Stark Industries and former base of the Avengers. The only one who didn’t seem excited was Peter Parker, Stark Industries intern and unofficial Avenger.

A hand slammed onto Peter’s desk, causing him to jump slightly at the sharp noise. “Hey, Penis! Ready for everyone to learn that your internship is sham?” Flash taunted. Again.

Peter rolled his eyes and turned away. He’d grown numb to Flash’s mocking. The bully wasn’t satisfied, though.

“Maybe you can introduce us to Tony Stark, hm? Oh, wait.” He covered his mouth with his hand, an expression of fake, exaggerated shock on his face.

“I’m not going on the trip,” Peter muttered. He regretted it almost instantly. Engaging just seemed to egg him on.

“You won’t be able to keep up your lie just by chickening out. You’re such a coward.”

“Just shut up, Flash,” Ned said. Even if Peter insisted he didn’t care, Ned hated standing by.

“Or what, you’ll sit on me? Crush me to death?” he jeered.

“Leave him out of it,” Peter warned. His fingers curled tightly around his spinner. Even as he spoke, though, he knew he couldn’t do anything. Not without revealing his secret identity. 

Flash opened his mouth to reply when Mr. Cobbwell cleared his throat to get the class’ attention.

“Bring the slip in by Wednesday. We need to send the information to the company so that they can make security badges.” Peter flinched as the harsh chime of the school bell interrupted the teacher. The man had to raise his voice over the sounds of chatter and zipping backpacks. “Have a good weekend, everyone. Don’t forget, the review packet is due Thursday.” And with that, he let them go.

Peter waited at his desk as everyone left. “I’ll catch up,” he told Ned when his friend gave him a questioning look.

As soon as Ned was gone, Peter felt his spider sense a moment before Flash plucked the spinner from his hands. “You know, it’s too bad your internship is fake. There aren’t enough girls in STEM, after all.”

Peter stood abruptly and snatched the spinner back. “Shut up, Flash!” Peter winced as his voice cracked. His empty hand was already in a tight fist.

“Mr. Parker! Mr. Thompson!” Mr. Cobbwell called, cutting the confrontation off.

Flash gave Peter a harsh look, hefted his backpack over his shoulder with an annoyed ‘hmpf,’ and strutted out of the room.

It took Peter a full minute to calm down, flicking the spokes of the spinner and feeling the slight vibrations of the ball bearings being absorbed into his fingers.

“Peter, did you need something?” Mr. Cobwell asked quietly.

Peter glanced up at him, having gotten lost in his own thoughts. “Do I have to fill out the permission slip if I don’t want to go?” he asked without preamble.

“What do you mean? I thought you’d be more excited about this trip than anyone. You’re always talking about your…internship.”

“The internship is real,” Peter said automatically. He’d long figured out that whenever people mentioned it to him, they were doubtful. 

“Regardless,” Mr. Cobbwell continued, not wanting to open that particular can of worms at the moment, “why don’t you want to go?” he asked again.

Peter spoke quickly, barely pausing for breath. “Well, I mean, I’ve been there before. Obviously. Every day. Taking a tour of my home would be weird, you know? And like, I’ve even been through the museums so there’s no point in going. And it wouldn’t really be fun because Flash is just going to be annoying the whole time, and--and I don’t want to make a scene, and--”

Mr. Cobbwell had to stop the boy’s tirade before he got dizzy. “Peter,” he said, holding up a hand to quiet him. Peter closed his mouth with a snap. “If you don’t want to go, I can’t force you. You’ll need a pa--a guardian’s signature to get out of classes on Friday, though.”

Peter beamed. “Thank you, Mr. Cobbwell!” He hurriedly stuffed his papers and books into his bag, including the blank review packet, and ran out the door, leaving the teacher to marvel at the strange direction of Peter’s enthusiasm.

In the hallway, Flash was nowhere to be seen, a fact that Peter was greatly relieved by. He quickly found Ned waiting for him at Peter’s locker.

“What was that about?” Ned asked.

“I was just asking about the field trip.”

“I thought you said you weren’t going.”

“I’m not. I just need to get May to write a note or whatever, and then I won’t even have to go to class! I can stay at home and work on my project.” He flapped his hands excitedly.

“What project?” Ned asked, his voice hushed and conspiratorial.

“Hm…nope. Can’t tell you yet.”

Ned looked like he’d just witnessed Peter kick a puppy. “Come  _ on _ , dude. You can’t leave me hanging like this.”

“Sorry, man. You wouldn’t be interested, anyway. We’re still in early stages. We won’t have a physical prototype until next month. Though, if I work through the weekend…”

Ned rolled his eyes good-naturedly. He gave Peter a slight push and started walking. “Don’t forget the review packet,” he reminded. “It’s, like, fifteen pages.”

“Yeah, yeah. Of course. It’ll take me five minutes. If I start the melting tonight, I should have everything ready calculations-wise by the time the forge is ready.” Without actively thinking about it, he walked with Ned out of the school. Ned was happy to listen to Peter info dump about his newest project. He was one of the few people Peter didn’t try to keep secrets from and, despite what his friend had said earlier, it wasn’t long before Ned knew more about it than most SI employees. More than Tony, possibly, since the man wasn’t directly involved in this particular exercise.

Eventually, Ned had to go home to help with dinner. They parted ways, and Peter hurried home to start his work on the project for the weekend. He’d tell May about the trip eventually. For now, there was science to do.

 

><><><><

 

The elevator had barely opened when Peter burst in. “Aunt May!” he called. May was sitting on a couch, drinking a mug of coffee and reading something off of an iPad. She’d bought it shortly after they’d moved into the penthouse in the tower, when she was still spending Tony’s money passive aggressively. Even now that they were on good enough terms that she’d let the man become one of Peter’s legal guardians, she kept using the rival tablet. It still worked just fine, after all. And seeing Tony’s face when he caught her using it was a guilty pleasure.

May looked up when Peter ran over, dropping his bag in the middle of the room. “Someone’s excited,” she said, putting her mug on the coffee table.

“The chemistry field trip is Friday,” he announced, dropping onto the couch.

“Did you get the permission slip?” she asked him.

“Yes, but I’m not going.” Peter started flapping his hands excitedly.

“And you’re…happy about that?”

He nodded. “I’m going to stay home and work on my project. Mr. Cobbwell said if you send a note, I won’t have to go to class. Which, I mean, no one’s going to be there, because of the trip, so there’s no point in going at all anyway.”

“Why aren’t you going?” she asked.

“It would be so  _ boring _ . I mean, what would be the point? And Flash would keep--uh, a-anyway, it would be awkward,” he finished meekly. May gave him the we-will-address-this-later look when he had cut himself off. He’d promised to tell her if the bullying kept up and, unsurprisingly, he hadn’t.

“Doesn’t the school pick someplace interesting every year?” May questioned after letting him stew apologetically for a few moments.

“They’re coming here,” he told her, just now realizing he hadn’t yet.

“Here?”

“Stark Industries.”

“I see.” May considered this for a moment. “You could tell everyone about what the internship is like. Help the tour guide out.”

“No one believes me about it. And it would be so awkward. You know how I get with crowds.” Peter started hitting his fist against his thigh in a rapid staccato.

“Peter…” May started.

“And you know the moment I start talking, Flash will get on my case. And--and I don’t want to make it weird for the tour guide. It’s probably someone I know. Everyone’s going to start asking  _ questions _ and--”

“Peter,” she said again, more firmly, covering his hand with hers to stop his harsh tapping. 

He took a deep breath, trying to settle back down. May wasn’t judging him for stimming; she just wanted him to be safe. But he was still riding the excitement of earlier, and now he had worked himself up talking about why he didn’t want to go on the trip, and he needed to let the energy out, but May was disappointed, and she was stopping him, and he wasn’t  _ trying _ to hurt himself, and--

“Hey, kid. May.”

And now  _ Tony _ was here, and he’d be disappointed, too, and he didn’t want him to be disappointed, and now Peter was working himself up again, and--

“Where’s your spinner?”

At the mention of the spinner, Peter stood abruptly and walked stiffly to where he’d dropped his backpack. He dug through one of the side pockets, and when his fingers found the familiar smooth plastic, he felt some of his growing tension relieved like a valve turned open for just a moment. Once he had it properly spinning between his fingers, that valve opened all the way. He focused his enhanced hearing on the pleasant whir it made, felt the tiny vibrations tingle his fingertips, stared at the smooth blend of color that had formed.

Out of the corner of his eye, Peter saw Tony give May a silent, curious look. And though she spoke quietly, May’s voice carried clearly to Peter.

“He got himself worked up over a field trip,” she explained softly to Tony.

“I’m not going,” Peter declared.

“Is that so?” Tony replied neutrally. He didn’t want to accidentally get the boy worked up again.

“It would be a waste of time,” he said. May gave him a look and gestured with one hand, reminding him to explain. “The tour is here.”

“Well then, I don’t see why you’d want to go.”

Peter smiled excitedly. “Mr. Cobbwell said that I don’t have to go to class if I get a note. I can work on the project all day!”

“Just don’t overwork yourself, okay kid? Make sure to sleep.” Tony was a hypocrite, but Peter and May both independently decided not to say anything. “When’s the trip?”

“Friday,” Peter told him.

“I’ll get things set up for you, then. Don’t forget to do your homework, though. You’ve still got a week of school.”

“I know, I know.”

May watched quietly as Tony ruffled Peter’s hair and returned to whatever he’d been doing before he’d walked in. She took in Peter’s beaming smile as he picked up his backpack and hurried off to his lab to work. She and Tony had their differences and the man continued to infuriate her from time to time, but she was glad that he was there for her boy. Their boy.

 

><><><><

 

True to his word, he’d started working on the first stages of his project almost immediately. Vibranium was tricky to work with in large quantities so he had to start melting it as early as he could. From there, he launched immediately into working and reworking his calculations. Everything had to be perfect, else he’d be wasting everyone’s time and resources trying to reforge the vibranium.

Tony and May took turns at forcing him to do his homework, physically dragging him from his computer setup and into the soft light of the kitchen. They would sit him at the table and he would sprint through his worksheets in order to get back to what he wanted to work on. May would let him go but Tony, who understood what his son was studying, would look over his answers and force the boy to redo them if he’d been sloppy.

Peter would spend over an hour on an assignment that would normally take him twenty minutes because it just so much less interesting than his project, and he couldn’t keep his focus on the busywork. Eventually though, after making small marks every few minutes that slowly added up to answers, he was released back into his lab to get back to what he loved.

It wasn’t until Wednesday night that Peter remembered the review packet. He was screwed. He was absolutely screwed, and he really didn’t have anything to say in his defense. He was terrible about long-term assignments and was supposed to tell May or Tony about them so that they could pester him about it. But he’d gotten so caught up in the news about the field trip that it completely slipped his mind, and now here he was, awake at two in the morning, scrambling to finish a packet that he was supposed to have been working on all week.

When his alarm went off at six, it was as if he hadn’t slept at all. But he’d finished the packet, and he was pretty sure most of his answers were correct. And even if they weren’t, he knew he would be fine for the test next week. Fatigue and haste were his current problem, not an issue with the content. 

A massive travel mug full of coffee helped but Peter was still sluggish throughout the school day. He mostly kept to himself during class, covertly sketching and calculating in his Iron Man notebook that he’d dedicated to his Avengers projects.

“Hey, Penis, did your fake boss give you that notebook?” Flash said as he sauntered over. He tried to grab the book off the desk but Peter covered it with his arm and put his weight on it.

“Classified information. Sorry,” Peter said sweetly as Flash tugged ineffectually.

The bell rang and Flash scowled before stalking off. Peter sighed and packed up his bag, forcing himself to calm down. He hated the clanging but there wasn’t much he could do about it. Headphones might help, but he knew that would get him in trouble. It was fine. He would survive. It was just a bell. A loud bell. A dozen times a day. Grating on his enhanced senses. It was fine. He was fine. He had a class to get to.

That class was chemistry. Peter noted gratefully that he wasn’t the only one who couldn’t focus on going over the answers to the review packet. The field trip was tomorrow and this was everyone’s last class of the day. It was no wonder that the room was full of excited whispers instead of questions about the formula of combustion.

“I wonder if something will explode!” “Do you think we’re going to meet Tony Stark?” “Do you think he’s as cute as his pictures?” “I hope we get to see the R&D lab.” “Are the Avengers going to be there?”

Eventually, with ten minutes to the bell, Mr. Cobbwell dropped the pretense of a lesson and let the kids gossip about their hopes for the trip. The volume skyrocketed, and Peter pulled his hood over his ears in a vain attempt to block some of it out. Even with his enhanced hearing, he could barely tell when the bell rang over the shouting of his peers. As usual, he packed his bag slowly to drag out entering the crowded hallway. It wasn’t until he’d slung his backpack over his shoulder that it struck him that he was free for the weekend. A wide grin split his features, and he nearly ran out of the building.

Happy’s car shook slightly from the sheer force of the excited teen diving into the back seat. The man glanced back and merely rolled his eyes, mildly amused when he saw that Peter was already writing in his notebook. Knowing the boy’s tendency to hyperfixate on his Avengers projects, Happy was fairly certain that he would barely sleep this weekend, if at all. That kid just did not stop. The man just hoped that he would finish before something happened to his health.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and critiques are always welcome!


	2. Chapter 2

Peter did not come to school on Friday, and Flash took every opportunity to slander the boy’s name while he wasn’t around to defend himself.

“Seems Penis is not only a liar but a coward, as well! As if not coming means we won’t find out the truth. It’s pathetic, really,” Flash said loudly and to no one in particular. Around him, people turned away in their seats. No one really believed in Peter’s internship, but Flash was taking it too far. Even his closest friends were bored by his insults.

“Lay off, Flash,” Ned called from further down the bus aisle.

“You’re just embarrassing yourself,” MJ added, her book open in front of her.

“I’m not--” He cleared his throat after his voice cracked. “I’m not  _ embarrassing _ myself. It’s just the truth.”

MJ shrugged, returning to her reading, and Ned just rolled his eyes.

Flash eventually stopped shouting about Peter, and everyone was silently grateful. The bus ride was only ten minutes, but it was long enough to let the excitement and chatter build to incredible levels. Rumors about meeting Tony Stark and the Avengers buzzed between students, hopeful wishes and sardonic dismissals alike. 

Once they had arrived, the students were given a few minutes to gawk at the massive lobby while Mr. Cobbwell checked the group in. A large portion of the first floor was open to the public, though the small museum and the elevators were blocked by a badge checkpoint.

“Hello, Midtown chemistry students!” A woman wearing a navy blue polo shirt and jeans was waving broadly as the various chaperones gathered the kids together. “Welcome to Stark Tower. My name is Maggie, and I’m one of your tour guides for today. As you get your badges, I’m going to go over the rules. Y’all’ve signed nondisclosure agreements, meaning if you find out any cool secrets, you can’t tell anyone.” She paused to let a few scattered giggles rise from the crowd. “You can have your phones on most of the time, but no pictures. Depending on what y’all’re interested in, some of the labs we’ll view will require you to turn your phones off, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. No smoking or alcohol, yadda yadda. Have your badges visible at all times, and stay with your tour groups. Now, who’s ready for a tour?” Maggie grinned as dozens of teenagers cheered. This enthusiasm was why she loved giving tours.

By the time she had finished her talk, the other tour guides on her team had given out the plain white security badges. Maggie walked up to the checkpoint and scanned her own pass. When the light went from red to blue, she crossed over into the main area of the floor. “One by one, now! Just scan your pass and come on in.” After about half the students had passed through the scanner, she started on her next speech. “There are many levels of security here at SI, indicated by colors. White is for day visitors, like tour groups. That’s what you all have. Next is purple, which is mostly repeat, low-security visitors, such as the families of employees. Next up is blue, then green, all the way up through red. There’s also gold level clearance reserved for Mr. Stark, Ms. Potts, and people at a similar level.” Several hands went up. “Yes, that includes the other Avengers.” The hands went back down. “As a long-term tour guide, I have a green pass. The colors also have levels, but y’all don’t care that much about the specifics.” 

By now, everyone had made it through. The chaperones helped split the kids into predetermined groups, each of which was assigned to one of the tour guides. Ned, MJ, and, unfortunately, Flash happened to be in the group led by Maggie, as well as around a dozen other students. “Alright, Midtown! Y’all ready to get this show on the road?” She let the cheers of agreement go on for a few seconds before turning dramatically and leading the group towards one of the numerous elevators.

The first part of the tour took everyone through some of the lower access testing rooms. Large windows separated the students from slick engines, incredible light and holographic displays, and strange machines with as-yet undiscernable purposes. The kids pressed up against the glass, staring in awe at the technology being invented before their eyes.

“I can’t believe Peter gets to see this stuff every day,” Ned muttered to MJ, craning his neck in the hopes of catching a view of some of the code on the screens in the testing room.

“You know you’re the only one who believes Penis Parker’s dumb lie, right?” Flash said, shoving Ned lightly. Despite the bravado in his tone, he glanced hesitantly over his shoulder to see if Maggie was listening. 

“Ignore him,” MJ said mildly when Ned turned to counter him. She didn’t look at either of them, instead focusing on adding the face of one of the nearby scientists to her crisis sketchbook.

“Whatever,” Flash said, sauntering off to talk to one of his classmates.

“He feeds on the attention,” MJ said, a hint of disgust coloring her words.

“I know,” Ned sighed. “Doesn’t mean I don’t want to punch him or whatever.”

After a few more minutes, Maggie got the group’s attention again. She led everyone through another similar display room before announcing that she got special permission to take them into one of the R&D labs upstairs. “This is a real special opportunity, folks. You might get to see some incredible science going on.” She winked conspiratorially, sending all of the students chattering excitedly as she scanned them into the elevator.

Maggie managed to keep everyone corralled as she went over the rules for being in the lab. She insisted that the whole group stayed outside until all of their phones were turned off. While they all scrambled to turn off their devices, Maggie knocked sharply on the lab door. She couldn’t get them in with her own pass, but the Lab Director was waiting for them. Her timing was impeccable; as the last student slipped their phone back into their pocket, the door was opened from the inside by a man with hair nearly as orange as his badge.

“Good morning, everyone. I assume you’re the tour group?” he asked. He smiled at the chorus of ‘yeah’s. “I guess I should let you all in, hm?”

Maggie held the door for the kids to file in. As they did, the LD explained the types of technology they tested and developed in this particular lab. It was hard to keep their attention, though, and he eventually stopped talking and allowed them to explore at their own pace.

The class milled about in the lab, watching over the shoulders of scientists and interns, some asking questions but most just ogling. After a few minutes, the main door opened, and a hush quickly spread through the room. Everyone, Midtown students and SI employees alike, turned to see who had entered and were greeted by quite the sight. A young man, an intern by the looks of him, had walked in. His badge had a gold trim and below his wide glasses, his eyes had bags deep enough to make the Grand Canyon envious. Most strikingly, though, was the wide metal disc he carried like a shield on his left arm. Upon closer inspection, the disc had Captain America’s iconic star-and-bar design etched into it.

“I need the testing room,” he said into the silence, his voice scratchy and tired. “Twenty minutes max.”

“It’s all yours,” the LD replied quietly.

The crowd split and the intern with the unpainted shield walked slowly through the divide. As soon as the heavy door to the testing room sealed behind him, the lab buzzed with activity once again. The scientists returned to their work, but all of the Midtown tourists gathered at the viewing window.

“I’d’ve thought that would be classified,” Maggie muttered, joining her group at the window.

“Is that…” Ned whispered to MJ, who merely shrugged.

The intern took the shield into his right hand, and, after a moment, hurled it into the wall. It bounced back, flying past him at what was certainly deadly speed, but he didn’t even bat an eye. As the shield bounced around him, never quite hitting him, he wrote in the air in front of him with his finger. His free hand formed a fist and was tapping rapidly on his thigh. After about a dozen ricochets, the shield began to lose momentum, and he deftly caught it in one hand. He hurled it again and resumed his writing. 

“Is he crazy?” Flash asked loudly. “What’s with the writing?”

“Mr. Parker is actually wearing specialty AR glasses designed by Tony Stark. He can see a UI that tracks--”

“Did you say ‘Parker’?” Flash demanded, cutting the tour guide off. “As in Peter Parker?” The class began to whisper among themselves. It certainly looked like Peter, though their classmate had stopped wearing his glasses a while back, and none of them had seen him this tired.

“Yes. Peter is one of our best interns. He works directly with Mr. Stark and helps him build and design equipment for the Avengers.” She glanced at the nearest FRIDAY camera hesitantly. This information wasn’t really a secret, but this  _ was _ just a tour group. He had walked in carrying Cap’s newest prototype, though. If it were classified, he would have kept it upstairs.

“You mean he wasn’t lying?” Flash’s face was quickly reddening. 

Maggie was completely lost. “About what?”

“About his fake Stark internship!”

“Told you,” MJ said from the side, a smirk creeping onto her features. Beside her, Ned was grinning like a maniac.

“Peter is an intern here,” Maggie said again, feeling distinctly awkward about the confrontation.

Before anyone else could say anything, the door to the testing room opened, and the man himself trudged out. Flash’s mouth slammed shut so fast it must have hurt, and the entire class, even MJ and Ned, stared at Peter, not that he seemed to notice or care.

“Thanks, Jay,” he called to the LD, waving a casual hand in his general direction. He turned to leave, ready to head back to his lab upstairs, and bumped directly into Maggie, who had approached without his notice. He blinked a few times, comprehension dawning slowly. “Sorry,” he finally said and moved to step around her. She stopped him with a firm hand on his shoulder.

“When was the last time you slept?” she asked him.

“This morning,” he answered confidently, though he started swaying slightly when Maggie took her hand away.

“Define ‘this morning,’” someone else in the room called.

“How much?” Maggie asked Peter.

Peter hesitated, calculating. “Uh, about five hours.” When Maggie silently gave him a stern look, he was forced to elaborate. “I-in the last fifty-seven.”

Maggie sighed. “FRIDAY?”

Peter groaned. “I’m  _ fine _ .”

“Activate Nyquil Protocol,” she continued, ignoring the boy’s protests.

“What the hell is happening?” Flash finally spoke.

The speed at which Peter rounded on him startled even Ned, who knew about his friend’s enhanced abilities. “Morning, Flash,” he said pleasantly, though his tired features, combined with the large shield on his arm, gave off an almost menacing air.

“It’s afternoon,” Flash replied darkly.

“Close enough.”

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Peter blinked at him. The only sounds in the room were the quiet whirring of machines and the incessant tap-tap-tap of Peter’s fist on his thigh. “What do  _ you _ think I’m doing?”

“Whose dick did you have to suck to get everyone to play along?”

“You still think I’m lying.” It wasn’t really a question.

“Lying about what?” The whole room seemed to suck in its breath at the sound of Tony Stark’s voice. No one had heard him come in.

“N-nothing!” Flash stammered at the same time that Ned helpfully chimed in with, “The internship.”

Peter voiced the question on everyone’s minds, though far more casually than most people might have sounded. “What are you doing here?”

“What do you think, kid?” Tony replied, equally casual.

Peter rolled his eyes. “I hate Nyquil Protocol.”

“You’ll thank me in the morning.” Tony spotted Peter’s fist still beating on his thigh and grabbed the boy’s wrist with surprising gentleness. Peter began to grow agitated in the few seconds between this and Tony pressing a Fidget Cube into his hand, but he settled quickly as his fingers rolled over the various buttons and spinning parts. Tony plucked the shield from his arm and tossed it casually to one of the interns nearby. “Get this upstairs,” the instructed, then proceeded to scoop Peter up into his arms.

“You don't need to carry me, Dad,” Peter mumbled, though he didn't try to escape Tony’s hold. 

“Uh huh.” The sound dripped with sarcasm. “If you tried to walk, you'd trip and break your ankle.”

“I’d be fine,” Peter assured, letting his head rest on Tony’s chest. When he closed his eyes, the pale blue light of Tony’s arc reactor illuminated Peter’s eyelids and gave his world a faint, reddish glow. He was very abruptly hitting a crash, and, frankly, it was a miracle he wasn’t already fully asleep in Tony’s arms.

The man sighed. He doubted Peter would be awake enough to take off his binder, and though he’d done it in the past, he didn’t relish the thought of removing it for him. “Alright, kid. Let’s go.”

As he started to leave, the private moment between the two of them evidently over, the Midtown students erupted into questions. Peter groaned softly at the sudden noise, and without thinking about it, Tony covered the boy’s ear with one hand and held his head closer to his chest to block out the sound. 

“Are you really Peter's dad?” “How long has he been an intern?” “Why’d you pick Peter?” “Are any of the other Avengers here?” “Does Peter live here?” “Aren't the internships for college grads?” “Can I get your autograph?”

Tony sighed at the tirade. “Yes, he's my son. Get over yourselves.”

One voice raised itself above the chatter. “Why  _ Peter _ ?” Flash shouted, his voice cracking as he tried to make himself heard above his classmates. 

Tony glared at him. He Did Not Appreciate this kid’s presumptive tone. “I picked him out as an intern personally for reasons you don't have clearance to know. What's your name?”

“Flash. Flash Thompson,” he said proudly. The class quieted around them. 

“Flash. I've heard about you.”

Flash was too starstruck that  _ the Tony Stark _ was directly speaking to him, that  _ the Tony Stark _ knew who he was, to recognize the threat in his voice. “You have?”

“Yeah.” He took a few moments to look the kid over, memorizing his squirrelly face. “Don't talk to me or my son ever again.” Despite the sleeping boy cuddled in his arms, Tony managed to look intimidating. Though perhaps it was  _ because _ of the protective way he held Peter, combined with the anger in his voice that had clearly been simmering so long and had finally boiled over. 

“But--”

Tony cut him off. “What did I just say?”

Flash stammered. “S-sorry--”

“ _ What did I just say? _ ”

The boy turned his eyes to the ground, heat rising to his cheeks. How else was he supposed to react to  _ Tony Stark _ telling him off like that?

Tony let him stew for a moment before turning to leave. “Enjoy the rest of your tour,” he said quietly to the rest of the class. His voice had stayed low during the confrontation, not wanting to wake Peter, but everyone could hear him clearly in the tense silence that had settled in the room.

No one moved for a full thirty seconds after Tony Stark left. Even Ned and MJ were quiet, unsure how to react. Eventually, Maggie broke the silence by clapping hands together once to draw the attention of her tour group. “Let’s move on to the next part of the tour, shall we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I read a *lot* of field trip fics recently. I got kind of obsessed. I read at least seventy of them, and when you read that many, you start to notice a pattern. I wanted to contribute to my favorite fanfic trope, but I also wanted to break from the standard formula a bit. No art is created in a vacuum, though. Aspects of this piece were inspired (directly or otherwise) by other works that I read during my binge, and they are as follows:
> 
>  
> 
> confidential  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/16075973  
> [CW: Starker - I don't ship it but the majority of the fic doesn't focus on the relationship; read at your own discretion]  
> -Clearance colors (gold at the top, at least)  
> -Dust Protocol (Nyquil Protocol)
> 
> How (Not) To Lay Low At Stark Industries/Starting From Scratch  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/15030773 / https://archiveofourown.org/works/15225507  
> [Part of a series - My favorite of this trope; seriously, go read them--they are phenomenal]  
> -Glasses (Mine are AR and not explicitly light reducing but I got the idea from this)  
> -PTSD from the Snap  
> -Sleep deprived Peter  
> -Peter showing up to use the test room for Avengers weapons while half asleep  
> -Protective interns who care more about Peter’s health than Peter
> 
> Perhaps He’s Not Missing Out After All.  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/15186398/chapters/35219072  
> -Peter being the tour guide (not directly in this but definitely an inspiration - meeting Peter at the tower)
> 
> oh come ON now  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/15439815  
> -Irondad (There are so many, so I picked one)
> 
> the ol’ razzle dazzle  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/7798261  
> [TW canon-typical violence - brief]  
> -Great Autistic Peter fic
> 
> Tired  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/15628308  
> [TW Anxiety, anxiety attacks, sleeping disorder, school pressure, mentions of bullying, low self-esteem, body shaming (kinda)]  
> -Peter needs to sleep more  
> -Trans Peter (Not the only inspiration but it’s there so that’s a bonus)  
> -Bisexual Peter (Again, not the only one but it’s a bonus)
> 
> Peter Parker is not just an intern  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/16024268/chapters/37398251  
> [I had come up with the idea for mine before reading this but I thought I should mention it.]  
> -Peter doesn't go on the tour (for a different reason)  
> -Everyone knows Peter is Tony's kid  
> -Peter can't regulate his own heat (I’d never considered it but I honestly love this headcanon so thank you)
> 
> Tumblr post  
> http://miscellanieux.tumblr.com/post/163037762543/headcanon-that-karen-was-peters-name-before-he  
> -Trans Peter giving his AI his deadname
> 
>  
> 
> I kept up the list as I was writing/reading, so certain headcanons are listed here that didn't make it into the final piece. They all are incorporated into my version of Peter even if they aren't directly addressed.


End file.
